Beauty From Ashes

Chapter 31 Part 2, The Next Step

And here the stories of New York, are about to begin. For a new church, the Disciples, the Cosgroves, for the future final pieces of Cheyenne's redemption. For now, Cheyenne and Albert have said "Goodbye!" (for now) to a lot of favored characters, but now we will be catching up with some other ones from the past, and meeting many more as we transition from California to New York.

Cheyenne's POV:
Six hours after leaving Los Angeles and California....

Ding.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. Just wanted to inform everyone that we have successfully reached the end of the cruise, and are currently beginning our descent from 28,000 feet. So just sit back, and enjoy the rest of your flight as we will be arriving in New York City just a few minutes ahead of schedule."

Albert lays back in his seat. "Well that's good." He then looks over and sees me beginning to wake up. I fell asleep about halfway through the flight, ending up resting my head on his shoulder. Now he nudges on my shoulder. "Hey, Cheyenne. Cheyenne?"

"Mmmrgh...? What is it?"

"Look outside." I do so, and.......we are so high above the clouds. The sun is being covered by them, but it's low enough to signify we're getting close to dawn.

"Oh my gosh...."

"They just said that we're reaching the end. So in a while, we should be seeing the skyline of Manhattan."

I sigh. "I STILL can't believe you talked me into coming to New York with you. California's one thing, but we're literally about to land in the Big Apple, that's crazy!"

"Just coming over here in general is crazy enough for me."

"How far up from the ground even are we?"

"About 28,000 feet, but we just started to move downward."

"Aww man. I hope that'll be soon..."

"What? You're still scared of heights?"

"A little bit. With these heights."

"Oh come on. You said you've been higher up than this.'

"What? When did I say that?"

Albert then grins. "You know...."

I then chuckle softly and punch him in the shoulder. "Oh stop it."

Twenty-five minutes later, Albert peeks out his window. "Whoa......check it out...."

I pull closer and we both glance outside. It's amazing, we can see the entire city. The sun is about to set, thus making the skyscrapers look so colored. The little 7 year old girl inside of me is squealing so loudly, because when I was a kid I ALWAYS wanted to come up here. I chuckle softly. "My gosh..... I forgot about her........."

He turns to me and smiles excitedly. "You see all of that? That's our life now."

I scoff and laugh sarcastically. "Yeah...
I didn't make it to Los Angeles as Cece. And God brought me here, as Cheyenne instead."

A while later, we touch down.
"Ladies and gentlemen, if this is your first time, then it is our pleasure to welcome you to the JFK airline of New York City where the current local time is 8:14 PM, EST. As always, please remember to stay seated and keep your seatbelts fastened until we have come to a complete stop and please check your seats for any and all personal belongings before you depart. We hope that you have enjoyed your flight with the LAX Airlines and thank you for boarding today."

We step into the airport in shock that we're even here. We step out of the main room and into the halls. And this room is FULL of people.
"Okay! So this population is already so much larger than what I'm used to living with."

"Yeah me too, and this is just the airport. Just imagine how the malls and parks are gonna be," I said.

"Or my new church."

"Speaking of which, do we even know where to look?" I asked.

"Honestly, no. Steven didn't give me a direct address for the church and neither did James or Simon."

"What, are you serious?"

"Serious. All they told me is, think of it as finding the Lord. Seek, and you will find us."

I facepalm and sigh. "And now I'm questioning this moving trip all over again."

"Don't worry, they told me what the building is supposed to look like. It doesn't sound like it'll be that difficult to find."

"Okay then. Well, do you even know if we're supposed to have a.....a welcoming party or something."

"Uh yeah, I think Simon said he would send two other Disciples to be on the lookout for us when our flight touches down. So we better keep an eye out, they might already be here."

I turn to the side and the sight that's before my eyes, causes me to snort out a chuckle and tap Albert's shoulder. "I think I just found one of them."

He turns to me and I point to a guy standing at one of the hallway doors. A guy who is tall, in a suit and tie, a Bus hat, and he's holding a big sign that has our names written on it with question marks.

He grins with a side-eye. "Gee. What makes you say that?" I chuckle in response before he pats me on the back. "Come on."

We walk over to this man until we're close enough to speak up. "Excuse us. Can we help you with something?"

"Thank you, but, I'm good. I'm just looking for two people flying from California.

"Oh that's funny. We're supposed to be looking for two guys who are gonna be future co-workers at a church with me," Albert said with a smirk.

This man then turns to Albert and gazes at him until he smirks with a snicker. "Of course! Of course you are!" We all chuckle and he shakes our hands after he takes off his hat. He's fairly pale, has tons of freckles, green eyes and bright red hair.

"I'm Albert Johnson, and this is my friend, Cheynne Mitchell."

"Hello!"

"And, I was told we were supposed to find two of you guys?" Albert asked.

"Yes well, my friend had like six cups of lemonade last night and......the rest is that," he said, rolling his eyes but with a goofy grin. "Anyway, I'm Brian Thompson. Pleasure to meet you both."

"Nice to meet- Ah yes, you're the one who sent me the email," Albert said.

"That is correct."

"So if he's gonna be working with the youth, what's your role among this new church?" I asked.

"Oh well, I am our Primary Tech Director. I do a lot of work on advertising, software, site administration and video editing. Softwares and Technological nuances are my specialties."

"Ahh so you're the tech nerd of this whole operation," I commented.

"Cheyenne?"

"Haha, pretty much. Also I've been known to do some writing and DJ work on occasion. The boss is hoping I can use that to keep a close eye on everyone during praise and worship," Brian said.

Albert squints. "How's that?"

"You'll see. So, do you guys need any help on bags? You've got everything?"

"Uh, we should have a couple more coming up around-Oh, here they are," I said as we spot them rolling on a nearby conveyor belt. Both me and Brian pick them up.

Brian sighs. "Alright, if that's everything, lemme ask, have either of you been in New York city before?"

We look to each other for a moment then back to him. "Not really, no."

"Well then. You'll be happy to know that I have arranged-"

"Waiittt!!"
Then a girl comes running up to Brian. "No, don't leave! Please!" She makes it to us. She is wearing a brightly colored blue jacket with a floral skirt, her skin is just about the same color as mine, she has medium curly platinum blonde hair, blue eyes, she's wearing glasses, and she is slightly shorter than me.

Brian chuckles. "Your bladder is on time once again, bet it's a new record this time."

The girl turns her head with wide eyes and a mouth agape. "Brian come on, you know I don't like it when it's brought up."

"What? It's best to let the new ones know right off the bat before you have to awkwardly bring it up later," Brian said. Causing me and Albert to glance at each other with a squint. He turns back to us. "Albert, Cheyenne? Meet Monera Maya-Ann West."

She smriks. "Please, call me Monica."

"Nice to meet you, Monica," I said, shaking her hand. "I'm Cheyenne, and this is-"

"Yes. I- We know who you are."

"Do you now?"

"Yeah. Pastor Cosgrove shared your video submission to a good number of us."

"I see. What's your schtick?" I asked.

Monica twiddles with her fingers for a moment. "Well overall, I'm part of the creative department, and I'll also be working for the youth ministry as the gender counselor. So I've been super eager to meet this new boss!"

"New boss?" I asked. "Wait, gender counselor?"

"Yeah. Most youth pastors have female partners in the room with them whenever they talk to girls one on one."

My eyes twinge. "So then.....why didn't my brother have one of those....? Wh-Why didn't Curtis have one of those?"
This definitely would have prevented me from kissing him. Or even doing the scam with him.

"Oh I think he did. But over time, everyone knew that he could be trusted. And besides, they're usually paired up for older church leaders, and you said he was the same age as most of the youth attendees."

I then look to Monica and Brian. "Oh, we're talking about my brother and his own youth pastor."

"Okay, okay," Brian said nodding his head.

"Hmm. Well either way, I'm looking forward to leading with you, sir," Monica said.

"Haha. Please, just call me Albert. And, I look forward to working with you too."

"Okay, hehehe!" She giggled wirh a huge smile. Monica then twitches her eye. "Hey? What's with the bruise? On both of you? And the black eye?"

We just glance at each other then back to Monica and speak in unison. "Long story."

"And probably not one I'd rather talk about right now," I spoke softly. Albert tries his best not to look directly at me and just glances down at the floor.

Then Brian takes a step forward with a clap. "O-Kay then. Well, if you will, come and follow me." Brian and Monica then lead us out of the airport and escort us into a van.

They then spend about half an hour driving us around the city, and at least another half hour stuck in traffic. They drive around showing us some important spots and places where they and the other Disciples are working and hanging out around. And while they don't show us where the church is, they do tell us the street names where we CAN find it.

Then at the end, right when the sun sets, they pull us up in front of a red apartment complex. Brian steps out of the car and walks around before stopping in front of us. "And this? THIS is yours. Me and some of the guys went ahead and moved in a couple of housewarming gifts.

"Well, it's a good thing you guys are so generous with hospitality."

"Alright, it wss nice to meet you both. Uh, do you have anymore questions before we go?" Brian asked.

"Uh, not right now."
"Not that I can think of."

"Very well then," Brian said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a chain. "Okay. Here are your keys. You're on the first floor, second door on the right. And we've got some rental vehicles in the garage until you need to buy your one. Make yourselves at home and have a good night."

"Thank you." He shakes our hands and steps back into the car.

Monica waves out from her window. "Bye guys, we'll be seeing you again soon!" They then drive off.

We watch them driving off and then turn to each other. We smile meekly and shrug, as a way of saying to each other, 'well, here we go.'
We then step into our new home.

We step inside and what we find ourselves is like a loft-style duplex three bedroom plus additional loft bedroom with two full bathrooms.

It is Luxuriously finished with ivory toned Venetian plaster throughout, with ebony stained hardwood flooring, the light filled, open and airy design blends seamlessly with gracious and comfortable living. The front door has a nice entrance gallery that leads to the beautiful living room which extends over 45 feet in length and has triple hung windows. A decorative fireplace with a limestone mantel on the South end of this space while tucked into the North end, and a custom home office encased with bookshelves and cabinets in African Anigre.

The dining room is flanked by a wall of Anigre cabinetry and another large triple hung window to the wall. The kitchen looks modern and fine, equipped with granite countertops and Balthaup cabinets, a brief view of overlooking Park Avenue.

Ascend the staircase to a serenity filled second floor. The extravagantly scaled, sunlit prime bedroom suite encompasses a separate, luxurious corner dressing room with abundant Anigre custom closets and an enormous, limestone bathroom with double sinks, a separate water closet, bathtub and walk in shower.

An additional prime suite, with two huge windows facing Park Avenue, features a separate water closet, two sinks, bathtub and beautiful custom cabinetry of Macassar ebony. This also has a full sized laundry room.
This place is REALLY nice.

Albert spins around glancing at everything. "Wow. And here I was expecting to walk into something cramped and dirty."

"For real. Whoever is leading you guys must have some deep pockets."

"I mean, I wouldn't say this is 5 Star price material," he said meekly.

"Well, if there's one thing we have my porn career to be thankful for, is that I've been financially spoiled enough to tell when the conditions are luxurious."

"Uh, yeah. If that's what you wanna call it " Albert said with a scoff. "The only thing we don't have is a view of the city for you to gawk at."

"Oh believe me. The view I got from the plane was more than enough for me. Plus we'll have less chances of falling out of a higher window," I said, thinking of how I was held out the window while possessed.

Albert smirks. "I can't argue with you there, Cheyenne." I shrug and Albert sighs. "Okay so, we better look around the rest of this place and figure out where each of us are gonna sleep."

"Sounds good, especially cuz it's almost that time anyway. Find your blankets, then we can focus on unpacking everything else tomorrow," Albert said.

I enter one of the rooms and turn on the lights. My eyes widen. "Uh, that might not be necessary."

Albert follows me and looks inside, and sees that both of the bedrooms already have fixed beds with covers amd blankets and pillows. And on each of them is a card that says, 'Welcome to your new homes. Sincerely, Helen C.L.'

"Huh. Well whoever these people are, they definitely know how to make us welcome," I said with a smirk.

The next day, we pretty much go cabbing around the city, picking out stuff for our new place. The Disciples have already provided us with pillows, blankets, some pieces of furniture and a few pieces of dishware, so we're just shopping around for whatever else we may need. Lucky for us, Curtis had kept and saved about $70,000 from the money I shared with him from my earnings, and he gave it back to us before the church party (twenty of which I gave back this morning). And luckily for us, we're not dumb enough to spend it all at once on stuff we don't need because, we both already knew going in that living in New York was gonna be costly.

It does feel a LITTLE bit uncomfortable walking amongst so many more people, but luckily, my new pink hair and my new wardrobe, specifically my new turtle necks, really seem to be helping me avoid being recognized. And of course, we knew traffic was going to be annoying. But we were both able to calm each other down with our own impatience and discomforts.

The day after that, we get a text from the Boys back home saying all of his musical equipment has now been packed up and is being shipped out here right now. So that should be good for whenever he's incited for worship rehearsal.

Speaking of which.....
Albert gulps down the coffee I fixed for him after he slept in late on our second day here.
"Hmm! Wow did you make this?"

"Yeah. Though I, don't really know what I was doing to be honest."

"No, it's quite good. Really, have a go."

I wave my hand and grimace as I step back. "No thanks. I, kinda have some bad experience with coffee."

"Bad experience?"

"Yeeeah. See, one time I was out on a boat ride with some friends, and we had to wist til we got back to the car to drink because, we forgot to put our bottles in the cooler. And Ny sweet friend forgot to mention that-"

Then Albert gets a text on his phone. "Oh, one second."

"Okay. Just answer it before your chow gets cold."
Albert steps over to the corner of the house while I'm pouring my coffee into the cup. And after that's filled, I pull out a pot from the cabinet to fix myself something to eat.

"WHAT??!!!" Albert shouted across the room.

I drop the pot. "Oh crap! What, what's wrong?!"

"That was from the girl, Monica! She says, 'hey Albert, the band and I are having our rehearsal and we're about halfway done! Where are you?'"

"Oh?! And they're just now, letting you know about this?" I asked.

"I mean it's not new for me, but I just got into town!"

"Shit. Well....okay, just, grab the plate, you can sit into her back of the car and I'll drive you over there," I said.
We've just gotten a car so, at least we can drive around.

"Okay. Do, you remember the directions they gave us?"

"Vaguely," I said with a shrug. "Do you have any details on what this place is supposed to look like?"

"Yeah, they gave me a brief description."

"Okay, grab your jacket and let's get rolling on this alley."

So we hurry out of the building and hop into the new car. Albert scarves down his food and it takes us about 15 to 20 minutes as we are driving around the central section of town, trying to find the spot that Brian showed us where to look.

We then make it to the last street they showed us, which is the corner of West Thompson Street and South Blvd. "Okay, over here." We make the turn and drive forward. "See anything?" I asked..

"Uhhh. Not yet?" Albert looks around. The very next sign I pass is Marion and Graceland. Then as we drive past one tall building...
"Wait! Over there!"

Up ahead is a massive tall building, white, mixed with gold patterns on the sides, decorated with multiple crosses, including a sculpture of a cross on top of the roof. The top structure of the building almost resembles the frontal view of a crown. And there's a parking lot before it, so we pull into it and park.

We are outside and walk forward a few feet staring at the building. And as impressive as this building looks.....we both are able to notice that it looks a little small to be a church, and it doesn't even have a name or a sign on it to give us a clue that this is the place.

I squint my eyes intently and nudge my elbow against him. "Are you sure this is the place? It seems quite small on the outside...." I asked.

"Well....from Simon's description, this is what I'm supposed to look for. He also said most of the structure would be underground," Albert said.

"Well maybe this is one of those cases where the building is possi-"

"Hey!!" yelled out a voice, followed by a door slam. We then turn to see a man sprinting toward us out from one of the cars that was preparing to drive off. He is dressed in a Grey and blue polo shirt and has a head of curly and Shaggy black hair.
"Hey!!"

Albert looks out to this man and gasps. "Hey!" Albert jogs forward laughing before he and James embrace each other tightly. They let go and talk over one another frantically. "Oh my gosh, it's been SO long!"

"For real!!"

"I've been wondering about you man!!"

"This is crazy seeing you again, how've you been?!"

"You look great man, but your hair's Still bushy!"

"Ahh what did you expect?! The hassle of it all!" James said.

I stand there in awkward silence, grimacing at this exchange.
"-bly bigger on the inside......"
I just stand there awkwardly, silently grimacing at their exchange and interactions. Of course

"You're starting to ditch the glasses in favor of a....slightly black eye?"

Albert whistles. "Yeaahhh. Are you aware of why I've got this thing?"

"Yeah, I watched the Divinity youth stream, and I heard all about the party from Andy, JT and Tyler" James said with his hand on Albert's shoulder. "Ugh.....I LOVE it!!"

"Haha, yeah?! I figured you would!"

"Still I wouldn't keep my guard down." James furrows one of his eyes. "They're gonna come after you HARD if you're not careful."

Albert scoffs. "Let them try. God's still with me."

James then chuckles and grips onto both of his shoulders. "That's my man, yeah!"

"Ahem?!" I clear my throat. "Um, I'm not a ghost, am I?"

Albert's eyes widened. "Oh, right! Uh. James? This- This is Cheyenne. Cheyenne, meet James."

James then squints closely and grins.. "Ahhh, yes. So you're this special, helpful friend he spoke so highly about. I've heard quite a bit about you."

"Oh well I hope not too much! And you're the helpful friend who came through in hours of need for everyone," I responded. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise," James said, shaking my hand. "Wow, you, uh- you're a lot more colorful than I pictured."

"And you're a lot shaggier!" I chuckled in response.

"Touché." He steps back. "So Will you both be joining us?"

"Yes. We are."

"Well, kinda, I'm just the plus one be I voted for the ride. And, I doubt I'll be able to contribute anything to this."

"Oh that's just her being modest."

"Is it, though?" I asked through a grimace.

James snickers. "Well either eay, welcome. We're honored to have you with us. Both of you."

Albert smiles. "The honor is all ours, James. And we're here because of you after all!" James grins. Then Albert grimaces. "So uh...am I too late for our worship rehearsal?"

"Oh! No, no not at all! Well I mean.....yes, but not completely. It's just that the worship singers who are are done, and my new in-law just placed me in charge for the last half hour," James said. "Pretty much it's just me and all of the instrumentalists for the rest of rehearsal, working on the structure and tones."

"Well, it sounds like I still have time."

"Care to show us the way?"

"You play an instrument too?"

"No, I- I just wanna take a look inside and peek one of the pieces they rehearse and i'll be on my way."

"She's suspicious, that's all....."

James grins and nods his head. "Understandably so. We'll see if the others will be comfortable with a viewer. But for now? Right this way!"

"Yessir!" We both follow him up the steps. "And.....in-law?"

James sighs. "Yeah man. Remember how I mentioned that my cousin- Simon's daughter, had found a new boyfriend?"

"Ah yes, how could I forget."

"Well he's here to stay. And they both formed a union as soon as we made our first advertisement if you know what I'm saying......"

"Couldn't protect the fort, huh?"

"Meh. I mean you'll see for yourself, it's not all that bad. And he's ambitious and EAGER to serve!"

"Sounds like a few other guys I know," I commented. "That's kinda strange how, one of our friends back in California celebrated his wedding before we left and how your friend is celebrating a wedding too."

"Go figure." James then turns around all wide-eyed. "Oh and, our first service and your first youth night, hopefully these won't turn out the way that your last celebration went."

Both me and Albert glance at each other. "Hopefully."
"Hopefully!"

"Of course we're in New York so what's the worst that could happen."

James sighs. "I'd that one of those famous last words? Haha. Don't worry, we're a decent ways from the bad streets of New York."

"Hmm. Good to know. Well, are you gonna show us in or what?" Albert asked.

James smirks and jesters his hand. "Right this way." So we follow him through the front doors and we step inside.

"Whoaaa!"

The building interior is black with green carpenting and golden wall painting, and bright lights around. And....there are a lot of walls traveling down the building. Where there seems to be more various artwork depending on where you turn.

"Hmm.....it sure is a LOT bigger once you're inside!"

"Yeah. My parents and fellow Disciples' Lillian and Victoria helped to design some of the artwork and designs. And we've got so many hallways to many areas that this is essentially a maze. So yeah, follow me and I'll take you down this way."

And he leads us down a long spiral downwards hallway for about 3 to 4 minutes, and there's a lot of interesting art that we pass by, including a very cute one of Jesus sitting down with Captain America, the Hulk, Spiderman, Superman and Batman with a caption that says "...and THAT'S how I saved the world." We continue to walk through until we are brought into a backspace. That's almost like a backstage area.

James walks us out the corner, where we come onto a stage at a GIANT room that reminds me of a concert hall that my dad would take us to see orchestras. And th8l8s is where we see a few people preparing to rehearse. James stops and gestures his hand forward. "And these, are the Disciples who decided to stick around foe extra practice."

"So what we're saying is, if you use that pedal preset for Fire Fall, it'll double the ambience, but if you act more subtle about it, it'll be just suitable for us to use. So let's try that at the start when we get to that piece...." A dreadlocked guitarist instructed to a long haired brown bass player.

"Okay. I Think I've got it."

"Hey boys!" The other people on stage turn to him. "This right here? James pulls Albert and presents him to everyone. "This is Albert, the new youth pastor and guitarist for the band. Looks like we missed the memo on including him into the group chats and schedules."

Then here, this is, Diego, Nasir, Lillian and Gabriel. We've got some other musicians on staff, but most of them have already left for today."

Diego is the guitarist, he's a tall light brown skinned man who looks to be South American. He seems to be the oldest person in the room, has long black dreadlocks that flow down his back, a small goatee and mustache and tattoos on his upper arms and elbows.

Nasir is the guy on the bass, he is also brown skinned, and he looks to be middle eastern. He has Shaggy black hair, a beard, a big pointy nose and glistening blue eyes.

Lillian is behind the piano, and she's a skinny caucasian girl. She has brunette hair tied up in a bun on the back and bangs hanging down beside her eyes, crystal clear skin with no makeup, brunette eyes and freckles.

And then Gabriel is the guy in the drums, he is Jewish-looking. He's wearing glasses, has curly hair, a freshly shaved skin, slightly tanned skin, green eyes and a mole next to his right eye.

"And then, uh...." James squints, looking around the room. "Is- Isn't our other friend supposed to be-"

"Sorry, sorry!" Monica rushes up onto the stage.

"Oh. And there's our keyboardist. Although Im sure you've probably already met Monica."

Monica runs up behind the keyboard. Albert laughs. "Monica? You didn't tell us that you were on the worship team as well."

She chuckles. "What can I say? I like to surprise people. As you're about to see."

"Was one of those surprises being you forgetting to tell him about rehearsal?" I asked her.

"Well, it's nice to meet the rest of you guys as well."

Monica widen her eyes and leans back before facepalming. "Ugh! I knew I was forgetting something. Sorry about that Albert."

Albert chuckles. "That's quite alright, Monica. But yes, I'm Albert. It's nice to meet you guys."

"Same to you."

"Us too."

"We've all heard about you Mr. Johnson. We're definitely excited to see what you bring to our team."

"Thank you very much."

Lillian then looks back and sees me. "Oh? I'm sorry are- You an applicant too?"

"Huh?" I turn back to her and widen my eyes. "Oh? No. No, I'm- I'm just here to observe, see what he's getting himself into."

"You mind if she sticks around for one song? I promise she won't stay long enough to be annoying," Albert said with a grin.

"Hey!"
And they share a chuckle and snicker.

"Sure, we'll let you get a sneak peek," said Gabriel.

"Eh yeah, I guess she can stick around. Just don't touch anything if you decide to come on stage," James said pointing to me.

"No promises!" I reply before stepping off the edge of the stage and sitting in one of the front rows.

"Okay. Is There anything else I should know really quick?" Albert asked.

"Well, this is gonna be my last time leading a rehearsal before the main worship pastor takes over," James said with a shrug.

"Hmm? So the church has been hiring for less than a month and already they've got a worship leader?" Albert joked.

"Yeah. We're just starting out for now and Cosgrove wants someone he can trust to lead full time beside him and his kids. But, he's a good guy, and he apparently trusts me enough in keeping the musicians under control."

"I mean you did a good job with the band you BURDENED me with leading the first day on campus!"

"Hey, I'm sorry. I wss leaving and I needed to find somebody-"

"Dude I'm just messing with you," Albert smirked. James scoffs. "So.. this worship pastor. Does he and your family have a history? I haven't been told much about who all else I'm gonna be working with."

"Yes AND no, but I'll explain that another time." He nods. "But hey, we really appreciate you coming out here."

"I appreciate you having me in your thoughts. I mean, I was excited to preach but....this place seems bigger than I ever thought."

"Just you wait. So, let me ask you, are you comfortable with playing lead guitar?"

"Hmm. I've mainly been a rhythm player in bands, but I can easily do both. As long as I don't have a mic to sing and distract me I can do it just fine."

"Okay great!" James said, slapping his hands together.

"The only problem is, I dont have any of my music gear yet. It's been shipped in the mail this morning, but it's probably gonna be a couple days before I can unpack and set up in the new house."

"Ahh. Well this isn't gonna take too long, hopefully. Next time we'll let you bring your set-up, but for now, we've got an extra setup, over there by the keyboards." He turns around. "Hey Diego, is it alright if he uses your backup set?"
Diego looks over to them and he gestures his hand over to his spot.

"Ah okay." Albert moves over to the keyboard spot. He sees an extra pedalboard and, a large blue sparkly guitar with a golden guard. "Whoa....! Look at this thing."

Diego laughs and stands tall. "She's a beauty, isn't she?"

"Yeah, it looks exactly like what Droff used to play!"

"Alright. Now as stated before, we've already ran through the songs with our vocalists. But before we wrap up for today, we're just gonna run through the parts one more time, see what kind of songs we'll all be comfortable with as a group," James said. "The list should be next to the board over there."

"Alright. Ehhh...?" Albert bends over, and reads the set list. "Oh, yeah. Yeah I know how to play these ones. I think there's only, one or two I'm not familiar with.,v

"Great! Now we're gonna start with the second one, Run."

"So is there anything else you think we should change?" Diego asked. "He wasn't here when we were going over your points, but how would you alter our arrangement now that we have an extra guitarist?"

"Um, well he said he can do the leads for this one, but I would still continue those muted octaves with the delay on your part Diego, to give the song a little more life to it, and Nasir you can start doing your riffs now that we have an extra guitar, then Lillian, hold back on any hig notes until the pre chorus," James said. "Annddd then Gabriel for the sake of our timing, we're gonna shorten the instrumental this time."

"Okay, gotcha."

"We're doing the original key and original chords, got it?"

"Yeah. F# right?"

"Yup. Is our captive audience of uno ready?"

I shake my head with a snicker. "As ready as I'll ever be," I said.

"Okay, let's see what you got Johnson. One two three-."

Gabriel starts them off with the song Run. Albert and the other guy Diego start out very strong and driven, with Albert doing a bunch of riffs, while Diego does some muted delays. Nasir plucks a variety of eighth notes, Monica plays organ effects and some synth lines, Gabriel has a strong groove. And James is basically just playing basic chords, almost as if he's acoustic but he's clearly playing an electric. Left handed too, which is a first time for me. Their sound really echoes out, and already he's fitting in with their mix flawlessly. As I sit in the room listening to them rehearse, their music just fills the room like it's a convert.

James sings the song with a low, baritone singing voice. Albert stops playing for the opening verse, and its mainly just James playing his guitar and Gabriel playing drums.
🎵 You were God from the outset
Powerful and creative 🎵
Then there's a brief drum roll and everyone starts to play chords.
🎵 You who saw us here before You called
All the stars and the earth to existence 🎵

Then Albert starts playing some muted, delayed chords, Diego plays heavy chords, Monica plays single noted organ lines, Diego plays some riffs, Gabriel plays more toms, and Lillian stops playing her chords until the second half.
🎵 You are God You are holy
History is Your story
You who was and is And who forever will be
God we live for Your glory 🎵

Then Albert starts to play some triplet note links, Diego plays heavy driven chords, everyone else plays their chords.
🎵 So we will run
All together our hearts aflame
With a fire that can't be tamed
Our God all glory to Your Name
Jesus🎵

Then everyone plays what they did at the beginning. Before diving back into their parts for the second chorus.
🎵 You are God You are freedom
You're alive now within us
You who saw us here before You conquered the grave
And delivered on the promise 🎵

And they play their chorus parts again.
🎵 So we will run
All together our hearts aflame
With a fire that can't be tamed
Our God all glory to Your Name
We will run
Our surrender to bring You fame
Our desire that You be praised
Our God all glory to Your Name
Jesus 🎵

Then there's an instrumental where they play their intro parts again.

We will ruuuunnnnnn
Albert plays some muted delayed picking, Monica plays some higher notes on his organ, Lillian plays some staccato piano chords, and Diego plays some low riffs along with Nasir as Gabriel his his high notes. And they co tinge this through the beginning of the chorus before Gabriel plays a drum roll that leads to them playing their chorus notes again.
🎵 So we will run
All together our hearts aflame
With a fire that can't be tamed
Our God all glory to Your Name
We will run
Our surrender to bring You fame
Our desire that You be praised
Our God all glory to Your Name
Jesus
Jeeesus! 🎵

They end the song with a heavy striking strum with Gabriel smashing cymbals and the three guitarists strumming it out.

Albert and Diego slide and trail off at the end. "Haha, how was that?"

"Hmm! That was pretty good kid," Nasir said.

"Woo!"
"Yeah!"
"Definitely."

James grins with pride. "I told you guys he was gonna be good. Nice work Albert!" James encouraged.

"Thanks, James. Think I'm in good hands Cheyenne?!" Albert called out.

I smile. "Sure seems like it. You giys have fun and, let me know if you need a ride back home," I said standing up and turning around to walk towards the door.

"Okay!"

"Alright, thanks for stopping by Cheyenne!" James hollered out. I throw up a peace sign and walk out.

"Seeya, bye!" one of the other girls called out.

Diego then turns. "Uh real quick Albert, um, how much does this current pedalboard and rig differ than, what you'll be bringing with you next time."

"Well first of all, I'm- normally used to playing guitar in a much smaller setting. My board is only, half as big as this one, but for the most part my pedals are pretty similar. Except not as many drives, I don't own a Whammy, and such and such."

"I think we might be able to help you customize," Diego said.

"ALRIGHT!! Let's move to the next one!"

Then I step out the floors at the end of this concert hall. And it's not until I come out of this door that I realize that I came out of here through another way. Not having explored the rest of this place yet. Oh well, how hard can it be to find my way out.

And then three minutes later after walking around the building, I wind up RIGHT BACK HERE!! So I continue to walk down the maze of these halls, and when I finally see another person walking out in front of me, I speak out.

"Hello?"
They turn around and I see a pear-bodied woman, just around my height, long blonde hair, hazel eyes, light caucasian skin, and a leather jacket around her. I xome walking up to her.

"Sorry, can I help you? We're not supposed to be open to the public yet," this woman spoke, in a British accent.

"Oh no no it's fine. I just....came here to drop off my friend for the rehearsal. And....I can't really seem to find my bafk to the door."

"And you're walking by yourself? You sure you're not a burglar?"

I scoff. "What's the supposed-?" I stop immediately talking once I catch a good look at this woman's face. "Hold on a second. Haven't I seen you before?"

"Excuse me?"

"It's just....I- I don't know. I feel like I've seen your face somewhere."

"Hmm. Well....your voice sounds a bit familiar too. I just, can't place my finger on why."

Oh god, does she know who I am?

But then she snaps her fingers. "Wait. Did you attend the designer classes at Fresno State University?"

I squint my eyes. "Yesss...? Why?"

"I.....i Remember answering a question from a gal like you. In Olivia Bohlman's class for styling and cosmotol-"

Then I jump back, slapping my hands together and throwing them up with my eyes widened, as it instantly comes back to me. "You...You're Victoria Clawson!"

"Yeah? You've got it!"

"Oh my gosh, I'm cheyenne!"

"CHEYENNE, That's it!!"

"Oh my god!" We both start laughing. "Well what- WHAT are YOU doing here?!"

"I'm just getting down with vocal runs today."

"Wait, YOU'RE a Disciple too? How?!!"

"Oh it's, nothing fancy, it was just....connecting with the right people, at the right time. And, I'm here with a couple friends and.....yeah, the career as a Vogue model and a fashion designer was great but, I'm ready to serve where God wants me."

I smirk. "You're still bluntly bold about that faith, are you?"

"No shame, darling!" Victoria then squints at me with a grin, and her hands on her hips. "So uh, you said you were bringing a friend to the rehearsal? Who's the chap?"

"Uh, he's Albert Johnson."

"Ahhhhh yes. Mr. Johnson," Victoria said with a smirk

"What? You know about him too?"

"I mean, when I was in Fresno, I did get a glimpse of jos worship college gigs, so, I already know he's talented enough to work on stage with us. But also, James, one of the other Disciples wouldn't shut up about his suggestion when we needed to find a new youth pastor. And of course Pastor Cosgrove has shared the video application he submitted to all of us."

"Wait, is that a normal thing?"

"Not exactly. But the Cosgrove family just felt so moved by his presentation that, they wanted us all to see who was gonna be joining us. And, yeah we're all expecting some stuff out of him."

"Seems like it. Um, how many people do you have in the Disciples anyway?"

"Well counting your little friend now, that currently brings us up to 18. But don't quote me on that, we've still got some people applying, so we might be getting a lot more than that anytime soon."

"Well, looking around, it looks to me like this church is almost presentable enough for the public."

"Yeah we're just working on a few more things. Our opening day is in 3 weeks, but I think we should be able to get everything done in half of the time. Should....I be expecting you to show up that day?"

"I don't know. I'm still thinking about it. Although between you and me, I'm not exactly, one of you guys."

"Oh. So you're just 'inspecting' the area for your friend?"

"Basically. But if I have nothing going on that day I'll probably swing by. Just to encourage him, give you guys a listen."

Victoria furrows one of her eyes. "You don't sound TERRIBLY excited about that."

"I mean so far, your music sounds good, and Simon and Lucas seem like awesome guys. But, I just haven't had, the best experiences with churches." She looks to me concerned, so I just look away. "I just met you, I'd rather not talk about it now."

She shakes her head. "I'm sorry. Well, hopefully the way we'll be doing things will, give you a better one. We're definitely passionate about, making this a place for everyone."

"I'm sure you are. Now, would you kindly help me find my way out of this place?" I said before chuckling with a shy smile.

Victoria smirks small. "Sure. Follow me."

A few minutes later, Victoria leads me back to the door we came in through. "Okay here we go."

"Yeah. Can you find your way from here? Or were you blindfolded on the way here?" Victoria snickered.

I shake my head. "Yes, I know where to go from here."

"Good." Victoria starts walking off.

"And Victoria?" She turns back to me. "It wss....haha, really cool to see you again."

She smiles. "Guess we'll be seeing each other more than we think." I shrug with a chuckle. Then she walks away. "Cheerio, darling!"
Well, living in New York has already gotten more interesting.

So I drive my way back home, and, about two and a half hours later, Albert walks back in through the front door.
"Hmm? Oh Hey Albert, you get dropped off?"

"Yup. We finished about an hour ago but, the guys decided to take a little detour first."

"Oh."

"Also a heads up, any future time James or one of the Cosgrove's tells us some sort of a meeting isn't gonna take long, just strap yourself in because you're gonna be there for awhile."

I chuckle at this. "Sounds like my dad. He used to awlays make jokes during service about, 'one more verse of the day, and you all understand I mean 5 more, right?'"

Albert snorts for a moment. "I'll have to remember that one."

"Oh boy..." I said, shaking my head. I then turn off my phone and lay it down.

"Hmm? What were ya watching?"

"Oh uh, let me ask you something. Have you also been getting a bunch of Luke Snipe videos in your YouTube recommendations?"

Albert's eyes then widen. "I was just thinking about that last night! It's like since we moved up here, his stuff just comes back from the darkness."

"Yeah so, I've been watching a lot of his older music videos, and all that, but also a couple of interviews he did. And it just made me think, of how low the Forty Lashes band has-"

"And also-! Oh?"

"No, go ahead."

"Like those interview videos just reminded me of like- I completely forgot that Luke Snipe was Irish for a long time-"

"FUCK, SO DID I!! Yeah!"

"And yeah much like you were saying, ot reminds you of how much better the band wss when they had Luke Snipe, who was extensively talented, charismatic, CLEARLY had a heart full of love for his fans...and then everyone else is just the worst."

"Tch, yeah! I'm still surprised that Sean's buddy knocked him the F out!"

"Yeah! And uh. I got shared a tweet from X, of Rudy the guitarist who was saying, Bruce is in a coma and so, we may have to cancel a few of our tour dates until he recovers."

"Oh no, what a tragedy," I said sarcastically. This leads to both of us chuckling over it. "At least they still have some common sense."

"Yeah, I guess- OH! And, speaking of Forty Lashes, have you ever heard of the band, the Amazon's."

"Uhhh...." I take a moment to process.

"They were these, south American reggae rock musicians who-"

"Oh yeah! Yeah Amazon's, yeah I know them. Tobias and uh, Giovanni were big fans of them," I explained.

"So, I can't believe I didn't recognize him at the start but, Diego, the other guitarist I wss playing with?" I nod in response. "He was 'Jaguar' from that band..!"

My eyes widen. "He was..?!"

"Yeah. It's just that he has those dreadlocks now-"

"Yeah! Oh my god, I thought I recognized him..! And uh, you know that one Vogue girl who came to my college classes? She's one of the Disciples too."

Then Albert cocks his head back. "REALLY?!!"

"Yeah I bumped into her as I was heading out."

"Oh wow. That's crazy."

"Yeah." Then I chuckle with a sly grin on my face. "So if you're done derailing us, how did everything go with them today?"

"Honestly, it was pretty awesome. These guys are pretty passionate and, the guys who are leading this whole group sure seem to be pretty organized."

Excitement

"So, do you know when you're gonna start organizing your youth group?"

"Uh, from what I understand, there's a few guys organizing a Center for me, and I'm not allowed to see it until the church opens go the public. So, probably not until next month."

"And, are you nervous at all?"

Albert sighs. "A little bit. It's been two days and I'm still getting used to everything."

"I meant about leading your own group?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Well we're in New York city."

"And?"

I sigh for a moment. "I gotta admit Albert. I'm actually a LITTLE MORE nervous about who will be your own students. Especially when this is one of those cities that, doesn't tend to have the friendliest of people."

"Oh come on!" Albert said before chuckling. "After dealing with Angela and everyone else, I should be able to handle it."

I scoff at him. "You gaining an ego?"

"I wouldn't call it that. Just, being optimistic."

"Hmm?"

Albert then squints at me. "Is there anything else you feel nervous about?"

"Like you don't know the majority of those answers?"

"Is one of them being nervous about....living alone? You and me?"

I look at him, then put on a soft smile. "Not as much. You know I trust you. I'm still wondering if I can trust that James' fellow, since, he looked at me kinda funny."

"Yeah, you'll get used to that. He's a 'people studier'."

"Also, I'm a bit nervous about thkse other Conquerors."

Albert sighs. "Cheyenne the guys back home can get take care of themselves, and it sounded like they're on pretty good waters-"

"I'm not nervous about that. It's just that.....they didn't just follow Angela, their careers were with her. And, given how Angela was so careless with everyone's money? I- I'm sure that most of them will be comfortable with the guys in Bakersfield, but I'm afraid that Angela is gonna keep fucking them over, especially because she has access to all of the money."

Albert perks up his eyebrows.
"Oh? Well.....it's funny you mentioned that because, Curtis texted me earlier today saying, a number of envelopes and suitcases just got mailed to the church. They opened them up and, it was Lexi's income, and everyone else's."

My eyes widen. "Wait what? How did that happen?"

"Zackary said he didn't do anything. So....my only guess is that the other Conquerors....gave it all back. Maybe...maybe they're turning over a new leaf."

"Can we....actually believe that?"

"They'd have to regardless. After what Zackary did to the website and everything that's been getting released online, some things will HAVE to change."

"And how long will it be until Angela swerves them into doing the same stuff again?"

Albert chuckles softly. "I have no doubt that she'll try something. But either way, the walls are their kingdom are already crumbling."

We both stare at each other for a moment until Albert turns around and steps over to the counter, plugging something in.
"And did they give you any updates on any other Important upcoming meetings?" I asked.

"Yes. Tomorrow actually."

"Oh?!"

"Yeah James said it's gonna be the first official staff meeting for the Disciples, and everyone is gonna be there. So, it's gonna be my first chance to meet the rest of the team, and of course, Simon himself."

"Hmm! Well, guess you better hit the hay early tonight. Just, don't use my toothbrush in the morning?"

"Promise you won't buy one that's the same color as mine?" I buy ny face into my hands. Then Albert chuckles. "Yes I promise. And Cheyenne?"

"Yes?"

"So, we all know what I'm here to do? Well, what do you plan to do?"

I look down for a moment. "I'm not too sure. But I think I'll know in time."

Albert smiles and nods. "Okay. Well, if I'm able to find something that would match you fairly well, I'll be sure to let you know." Then Albert steps away and heads off to his bedroom.

The next day...
Albert's POV:
It is ten til noon, and James and I are stepping through the front door. "Thanks for the ride over here, James."

"Not a problem at all," James said.
Cheyenne overslept last night watching some late television. And she had the keys to the xar hidden somewhere so I had to call James to pick me up.
"So are you excited?"

"Yeah. A teensy bit nervous but, I've been waiting a long time to get to work so, yeah."

"Me too. It's gonna be great to finally be able to work with you. All of the boys in Fresno had nothing but great things to say about you leading the group, and now I get to see it for myself."

"As do I. And those guys were fun to work with too." I squint. "Speaking of which, do you have anything you can give me a heads up on? About, some of these other Disciples?" I asked.

"Umm, nothing too major. Except that a couple of tend to be a little rambunctious and overenthusiastic at certain times. Especially when on stage."

I nod my head. "Good. So nothing I'm not familiar with." James turns his head to me and I gaze at him and we both share a quick chuckle. "I've had a fair share of mischief and shenanigans, trust me."

He pats me on the back. "You're gonna fit right in. And I take it that you and your girlfriend are settling in okay?" James asked.

"So far so good. And she's Not my girlfriend." James chuckles. I then lower my head. "Although.....uh....?"

"Hmm?"

Sigh. "So, she said she's, still thinking about what she's gonna be doing when Im doing all my work. I know that, back in Bakersfield, and Fresno to an extent, she was having a really hard time trying to find a job that would take her in."

James darts his eyes around. "Well, what does she like?"

"She does have some interests in stuff fashion, designing and art. And this is a big city so, she'll surely find something to do with those things."

"Hmm. Well, I know some people who she might be able to click with, people who are gonna need some extra hands when we open our doors. Maybe Cheyenne can participate?"

I raise my eyebrows and squint. "Maybe." Then I look around. "Okay how much farther do we have to walk in this maze of a place?"

James snickers. "Don't worry, it's just around the next turn."

Then, an older man steps out, intercepting us in the hallway.
"Ah, there you are James. Usually you're one of the first ones in the room, not the last!" The old man laughs.

James shakes his head. "Don't go loofy on me, Uncle."
Oh! Okay so this must be the man himself!
"And yeah, I would've been inside sooner but, my friend here still needs to be shown his way around the whole place," James said, waving his hand to me.

And the older man turns his head to me, and his eyes widen and he smiles brightly.
"Oh! Oh my goodness, hello there!" He eagerly shakes my hand. "You must be Mr. Johnson, yes?"

"That's me!"

"He's him."

"Ah, I'm so delighted to meet you," Simon said. "Good morning, welcome to New York and Welcome to The Rock."

Gosh, I can't help but just smile and laugh on the inside. There's something so wholesome and kind of adorable about this man's excitement.
"Likewise. Thank you for bringing me out here. It's uh, it's quite amazing, what you've established here. Truly beautiful." I then squint. "If I may ask, what was this place originally?"

"Hmm? Oh that's something you'd have to ask his mother," Simon suggested. "She said something about this being, an old underground concert hall that had been abandoned and replaced until the building above it was torn down 10 years ago. We just so happened to discover it, we had set up work to build above it and, here we are."

"Haha, well old or not, you've done a fine job working on this place."

"Consider it home," Simon said. "We greatly appreciate you coming up here to join us."

"Yeah well, you have this guy to thank for that. Right James?"

"Is everyone else ready?"

"Almost, we're just missing you and a.....few other people, ermm...?"

James sighs. "Let me guess, is it those two guys?"

"Hmm...?" I hummed with a squint.

Simon then smirks. "Oh, yes yes. Yes, before I forget, Johnson? Uh, you've already met Monica, correct?"

I let out a soft chuckle. "Yes, and I'm already aware that she has a few things that might make her late at times."

"As well as forget a few details but we all know she's working on it," James added.

"Then you must also know that she's gonna be working in your ministry as a counselor. But, she's not the only one you're guaranteed to work with, because-"

Then we begin to hear two men approaching, as they step out from behind a corner, bantering. One of them is Australian, and fairly muscular and handsome. The other one is a tall Korean young man.

"And that's why we're gonna hold off on staying up late before important meetings."
"Yes but unlike you, I have an excellent excuse."
"Lemme guess, a waitress poured soup on you for trying to hit on her?"
"Oh come on Tommy, just because you're married doesn't mean you gotta be like that."
"No, but it's still fun to toy with a fellow, team-mate."
"Okay, now you're just pushing it."

Simon hears their voices and cackles with a grin. "Ahh What timing!"

They are straight. "Good morning Pastor Cosgrove."

"Good morning!" Simon steps over and pats them both on the arms until he leads them over to us. "And boys, I'd like you to officially meet Mr. Albert Johnson."

Both of them broaden their eyes, glancing at me and they smirk.
"Oh? Ah, hey man."
"Nice to meet you mate."

"All the same fellas," I said, shaking their hands.

"And Albert? Meet Tommy West, and Ben Nhova. These are our other Disciples who are gonna help with your youth center."

"Oh! Okay!" I look to them and they're smiling and standing firm with confidence.

"Ben will take care of the management, Tommy takes care of everything else," James said. "If you're the pastor who likes to have fun with his group, Tommy's the boy to get the party started, right Tom?"

Tommy let's out a soft chuckle with a grin. "You know it!" Then we all share a quick laugh.

I shrug and turn to them with a smile. "Well, thank you guys. I'm looking forward to working with you both."

"So are we."

"Alright well come on. We're starting this meeting in a few minutes."

"Right!" The five of us continue walking down the hallway until Simon takes a right turn and opens a door for us. We enter what seeks to be a larye Congregational dining room with chairs layed out and the tables flattened and folded up against the walls.

As I enter the room, there are.... Quite a lot more people than I expected.
James, Tommy and Ben take their seats, and I can see Monica, Brian, Lillian, Nasir, and Gabriel. But there are also at least 9 other people.

And in the very back of the room, there's a woman who's sitting with a few large men. They're at least 3 times my size and just barely taller than me. And.....for some reason, all of these giants actually look incredibly familiar.

Then, someone taps me on the arm. "Excuse me. If you're looking for a place to sit, you can take this one," spoke a blonde woman with a British accent.

"Oh. That's very kind, thank you." I sit down beside her and continue looking at the other people around us. "So, are all of these people fellow Disciples?"

"Hmm. Yes, the majority of us. Singers, workers and assigned leaders."

"Then some of us are just in staff for heavy management," spoke a petite brunette beside me, who nudges toward the big guys in the back. "Don't worry. They're all a big group of teddy bears."

"Well, I ain't gonna judge that."

The blonde Brit chuckles. "My names Victoria. And that's Kelly."

"Hello there. I'm Albert."

"Albert? OH, you're the guy who submitted to be the youth pastor...!" Kelly spoke out.

"He SURE is," said a voice in front of us. I look forward and see Steven cackling with a big smile on his face.

"Steven, hey!" I stand up, smack his hand and we pat each other on the back. "How are you man?"

"I'm doing well. Glad you could join us all the way from California."

"Naw I'm here for the Big apples, where else would I go?" Steven just gruns while several of the other men laugh in response and I just grin.

Steven nods his head. "Good to see you up here man."

"You too brotha."

"My man, Steve," James said shaking his ahdn and embracing him.

"Alright, everybody listen up!" Simon called out. "We've got lots to go over for today. So let's take our seats." Everyone moves around to take a seat. "Alright everyone. Welcome to the first official calling of the Disciples. First off, I would like to thank each and every one of you for being here, for accepting the calls that God laid out on your hearts, and for taking the time out of your days and your lives to come here and commit and devote yourselves to this new chapter. This is only the beginning, but I say this with true earnest, I am grateful to have men and women like you willing to serve with us. So thank you for gathering here today."

"As some of you may know, we are set to open up the doors to the public of New York in a month and a half, so we have much to prepare for and we're gonna have a lot to go over. Because first and foremost, we wanna ensure that the people of this city will receive access to the Gospel of the Bible. Not the gospel that is promoted on TBN, not the gospels that are owned by social justice authors, not the gospels that is preached by the political parties. No, the only gospel that is first priority in our ministry, is the Gospel of God, of Jesus Christ. That, which is written in the text. Period. Can I get an amen for that?"

"Amen!"
"Amen!" I sooke out with a heavy nod.

"Excellent. And just real quick, I'm going to pick on a few of you if that's okay. It is? Alright then!"
The others laugh.
"First off, I would especially like to thank Mrs Helen Garrett for using her real-estate history to not only arrange all of your new living quarters, but also for helping us lay out the groundwork for this house the past few years. We've secured the foundation and gained the resources through your experience. So my dear sister, you might be intimidating, but you can always be counted upon. So let's thank her."
Applause.

"Then, as I have been informed, we will soon be sponsored and broadcasted in 20 plus countries, and thanks to Nasir, Danaica, Tommy and Liang, we will have working translators for those in our home country who were never gifted of else ningyo the English language so when we open up, the people of Iraq, Mexico, Korea and China will be able to understand in their languages. A small step, but start small before you expand bigger. So good work."

"Next off, ehhh...oh yes. Friday night's first briefing and test trials on security, was I believe a great success and I'd like to thank Victor and Gordon in the back for their terrific performance so, thank you guys. I feel safer already."

Then he steps towards me. "And of course, I must address the elephant in the room. There were two other individuals who were supposed to be here with us, Elizabeth and Matthew. Matthew will not be joining us at this given time, and insists that he must delay his future work with us in order to take care of a family emergency, a request that I, as a fellow father, was more than willing to grant. But Elizabeth, a close and dear friend of mine who was arranged to lead our youth ministry, has a similar family emergency that unfortunately, will not allow her to serve alongside us."

Then Simon steps towards me. "BUT, not to worry my friends." He then lays his hand on my shoulders. "I know some of you have met him earlier but for those of you who have not, this is Albert Johnson of California. Albert here is a brief co-worker of my nephew James, who was more than eager to recommend him for the youth leader position, to the point where he would not leave me about it." The others around us start to laugh.

"Now you all know me. I am not one to hand out leadership positions to just anybody, especially people who I've never met before. But, I trust my nephew, so of course I was happy to look into his suggestion, and see what kind of gifts his friend could contribute to our ministry. And.....he's sitting here before us so I think you all know how that turned out. Albert will be our Youth pastor as of today, and will be temporarily filling in for Matthew on the worship team. So let's all welcome our young friend Albert to the Disciples!"

Then everyone else in the room begins clapping and hooting out for me, which flatters me but, I just can't help but squint. They never told me I was filling in for somebody else on the team.

"And Albert? Thank you for being able to join us at this time."

I look at Simon Cosgrove and smirk.
"Hey, this time worked out for my schedule!" I joked, which makes some of them laugh. "Haha, no but in all seriousness, this is, such an honor and, I can't wait to start working with all of you."

"Neither can we." He pats me on the back. "Take a seat my boy. Now, for our first matters. Peter, Ashley? You two come up here. You too, James."

James comes up to the front along with two others. A young woman with long black hair and a tall blonde man. Both of whom have brown eyes.

"As you all may know, this group of Disciples is arranged to be more than just a basic staff. We all have roles to play in this ministry. And every single one of you who wears the Title of Disciple, will have a playing hand in our worship team. So, as we begin to go over that first, I'd like to introduce to you our worship leaders. James Laffoon, and my two bundles of joy, Peter and Ashley."

Hmmmm...! Interesting. So this ministry seems to be full on family led. But also I'm following the lead of the pastor's children when we do praise and worship.

"Thank you, dad," Peter said. "Well I can tell you all right now, it's an honor for us to be serving with you."

James speaks next. "With all of us, and our individual experience in leading different ministry fields, we are hoping that we can each bring something for all of you. And we've got expectations for sure."

"Now when it comes to this team, especially in worship, we're not looking for passive members. We want your true dedication and commitment, your time to serve and share your skill to the Lord. No matter how many people are in the seats, we need to treat every Sunday like it's a superb owl, and give it our best skill," Peter said. "And if you're not mentally prepared for that then, maybe you can just step back now, and we'll find another comfortable place for you."

"But if you dig in deep enough, and follow our lead, you won't get lost with us. We're gonna be looking out for all of you like a true team," Ashley said. "And over time, I believe that in our worship, we're gonna step into places that we never thought possible."

Various people around me look around at each other. I look over at Steven and he just winks and nods at me, then I look back to James, Peter and Ashley and give a little head nod.

"Alright. So, where do you plan to start first?" Tommy asked.

"Excellent question. First off, it's important that we all-"

Then suddenly I remembersk.etning.
"Oh, wait a minute?" I interrupted, raising my hand. Everyone starts looking at me. "Oh I'm, sorry guys-"

"No Albert, it's okay. What is it?" Simon asked.

I look at James. "Well, didn't you say there was, one other person who was gonna lead worship?"

Simon bears this and quickly looks around the room before glancing at his two kids who just shrug lightly.
"Hmm, another excellent question. Uh, Ashley?"

"I don't know. I was hoping he'd be able to make it."

Peter sighs. "We do have another leader. But, I guess he forgot about today. Makes sense due to how we've arranged everything so far that he would forget to work it into his schedule. We've been doing a lot so...dad?"

Simon sighs as well. "Yes, I suppose you are right. But it's okay. We can still continue this meeting without him and I can catch him up at home."

"And- And if I may ask, who is our other leader?"

Ashley smiles. "He is my husband as of recently. And, believe it or not, you're probably already familiar with him. He used to-"

"Uh, sis?" Peter said, interrupting Ashley. "I think he would prefer to do his own introductions. You know?"

Then, I begin to hear something outside.
"Wait. What is that?"

"Huh? What is what?"

"Listen."

We all listen and there's a loud engine revving outside. Peter, the blonde son closes his eyes and grins. "Oh for Pete's sake."

"What is it?"

"Come on!" James said as he, Peter and Ashley head out the door, leading Simon and the rest of us to follow after them.

What are they going out to see? Well, you'll find out at the end of this. But for now...?

Angela's POV:
My eyes slowly begin to open.......and I'm so blurry. I groan loudly and softly speak out. "Ohhh my head......what happened.....?"

"Ah. So you're finally awake," spoke my step father, the balc and younger version of Mr. Clean, Jason Lockwood. "Hope you're rested enough now?"

"Jason.....?" I slowly lift myself up and much to my shock, I'm back at my bedroom in Reno. What in the world?
"Wh- When did I get back here?"

"Almost three days ago. Two of your friends said that you skipped and hit your head falling down some stairs."

Huh.....? The steps weren't THAT high from the stage. "Im....not sure about that...? Ugh Ugh... there was a lot that happened."

And then, Jason broadens his eyes at me with....a disappointed look on his face. "Yeah, a lot Has happened.... Angela? You and I have some things to discuss-"

"Where are they.....?"

"Angela. Please, I really want us to sit-"

"Are they working?" I asserted.

Later on, I return to my studio in the garage. Which I haven't seen in almost two years, and I see Snake, Ryan and Tobias talking to each other by the door.

"Ah. Good morning sunshine. I almost thought you'd never wake up...." Ryan said glancing over at Snake.

"Of course. She wasn't hit hard enough to be killed...." Snake whispered.

"I got hit?" I asked.

"Yeah, a surprise attack. But you know, we took care of it," Tobias said.

"Well.....at least I know where your loyalty is always going to stand," I said with a grin. "So let's get everyone up and going!"

"Uhm-?! Yeah, uh, before you go in there, I need to brief you in on some-"

"No time for that. It's work time, baby!"
I push through the doors, make my way down the steps for the first time in a LONG while, and I enter our studio room.
"I'm BACK bitches! Alright, let's get RIGHT BACK into the-!!"
But then I immediately stop......as soon as I notice how many people are in the room.
"What the.......? Where is everyone? Geoff, Faris, Kitty? Mansn and Scotty?!"

This isn't even half of the group!

Snake, Ryan and Tobias walk up to me. "That's uh, that's what we were about to tell you."

I turn to him. "Well then what is the meaning of this? Why are over half of our Conquerors not working today!!"

"You might wanna sit down," Ryan whispered.

"Why do you say that?" I asked, refusing to move myself from where I'm standing.

He then stammers nervously. "Angela, since we got out of California.....uh...? A lot...A lot of the Conquerors have left."

I hear this, and I'm enraged. "What the fuck? Since when do you guys leave work early? This is disgraceful! Everyone start calling them back in, now!"
I pull out my phone and start dialing up a number, but I turn around and see that no one else is doing the same.
"Uhhh, hello?! I said RIGHT NOW!!!"

Snake shakes his head. "No Angela!" he said grabbing onto my wrist. "No, they left. Indefinitely. Indeterminately. A nebul-"

"What he means to say is.....the people who aren't here, have quit. They've quit the Conquerors and the Kingdom," Tobias said.

My eyes slowly begin to widen. Snake, Ryan and Tobias all nod their heads. "How? We should still have 200 people after 40 people walked out on us!" I shouted raising my arms.

"In case youve forgotten, more than half of all the new recruits ran away during the fight. And the ones who stuck around, most of them walked off before we made it to the airport," Ryan said.

"As for everyone else? The others have been filling out resignations ever since we got here, one after another," Snake said.

"In other words? We're pretty much.....all that's left," Tobias said.

I'm nearly frozen, and I lower my arms in disbelief.
"Seriously.....?"
I look around the room again.

They all nod.
There's me, Snake, Ryan, Tobias, Edd, Nate, Jamie, Griffin, Romeo, Giovanni, Ofelia, Bella, June, Thailer, William, Hiroki, Gia, Audrey, Paisley, Tanner, Naomi, Yasmin, Preston, Mikaela, Dallas, Dana, Chad, Ishmael, Paula, Marco and only 12 of the new recruits.
Shadie
Blair
Minx
Lilith
Katty
Selkie
Jenna
Bailey
Ryder
Jared
Vince
DaVess

This isn't even-
How could they-
Wait, what's happened to-?!

I just grab onto my face and groan quietly. Slowly lowering my arms and looking up where I turn to Snake. "Snake, Ryan, Tobes? May I speak privately with you three?"

"Well......yes of course."

"My office. Right now." I pull on Snake's arm for a moment before he follows me into my office on the opposite side of the room. The other two are short behind him. I step inside and, find my office surprisingly clean and organized. "What the-? It....shouldn't be this clean after not being here for so long."

"Yeah, what do you think? We spent all night cleaning and organizing this place for you," Ryan said.

"Little did we know you'd wake up in time to see it fresh," Snake commented.
They cleaned up this place? What?
Then I walk over to close the door on us.

Tobias chuckles. "Yeah, I know we always give you a hard time when you ask us to clean this place, but honestly-"

But then as soon as the doors close....
"How can you be so pathetic?!"

They all quickly look back to me.
"Huh?! What do you-?!"

"How could we have gone from over 200 people, all the way down to a total of 42! Especially in the crew department, where we've gone from 30 primary crew members to THREE?!! THREE PEOPLE, who now have to do everything production wise on making our scenes!"

"We REALIZE that and we're WORKING around it! The people who work here can do more than one thing you know?"

"That's not the point?! How did we go from 240 people all the way down to 40?!"

"Oh well let's see, uh?" Tobias mentioned. "The Forty Lashes band had ran away, along with KT's rappers, then about 100 people ran out the church halfway through the fight, 45 people stayed at the party while ANOTHER fourty-"

"What about Donnies gang? And- And KT's?! Or what about Alex and Destiny?!"

"Oh we fired those two. The last thing we need are predators and pedophiles working for us," Snake said. "Just in time because Mayor Lockwood found out about them and had them sent back to prison."

"Yes and THEN, Javier and his team cut off all of our ties with them. Then, Nick took the rest of the Shiners, and spat in our faces calling us busts before they drove to the airport to fly back to Canada," Ryan said. "I can't speak on Bruce and the Lashers, but I don't think we'll be working with those two groups again."

"But what about Tabitha? Or Declan?"

"What about Declan?" Tobias scoffed with a grin.

"Hey ANSWER the question!" I demanded, with a furious scowl on my face. "Do NOT tell me that they've gone and backstabbing me too!!"

Snake rolls his eyes. "He's fine. They both are. It's just, Tabitha and Declan got the absolute shit beaten out of them, so they're in the hospital recovering in intensive treatment."

"KT is there too. Again we can't speak for him but, Declan and Tabitha will surely be back to work once they're standing," Ryan added.

"Ugh, what a relief. And I'm assuming that Brock isthere too, yes?" I ask.

Ryan and Tobias raise their eyebrows, and stare at me before they glance at Snake, who sighs reluctantly. "He's, uh........Brock is still in Bakersfield."

My eyes slowly widen. "What?!"

"Now listen to us-"

"You're telling me that Brock chose that bastard over me?! What the FU-?!"

"He hasn't done anything! He hasn't even woken up," Snake explained. My eyes squint, but then broaden back open. Snake folds his arms. "I had to leave him with Johnson's nurse cousin, and she has him in intensive care. He's not dead, but last time I spoke to her over the phone, he hasn't woken up since, and they're not sure when he will."

"I'm guessing he's pretty bad," Tobias added.
"All they said was that his pancreas was ruptured. Maybe even his intestines."

"Snake even drew some of his own blood to help with a transplant. Surprising, given he's such a pussy with doctors," Tobias teased.

"Look I'm not here to talk about that, okay?!" Snake spoke out defensively.

"So you just left him there...? You made everyone get on a plane without him?!"

"Did we really have an option? We drove back to LA overnight, and we had a couple hours the next morning to get everyone on the plane and they were in the middle of cutting him open for stitches and blood transfusions. We wouldn't have been able to get him in the car and on board the plane no matter how bad we would've wanted to."

I close my eyes and take in a LONNGGGG, DEEP breath. "Stop it. Stop trying to act like you're not pathetic..!"

"What?!"

"If you guys were truly as loyal to Brock as I am, you would've gotten him out of that hospital and gotten him back here. Period!" I declared.

"Aren't you even listening?" Ryan said.

"Are YOU even liste-"

"There's no way we would've had time to drive all the way back there and back to LA!" Ryan shouted.

"Even if we did, Snake said they had just started surgery on Brock and cut him open," Tobias said. "They just started and had lots of more work to do on him-"

"It's your own faults' for having bad timing," I growled.

"When is a good time to undergo surgery, Angela?" Tobias asked with sass.

"No you idiots!" I shouted. "If you had stopped goofing around and started taking things seriously, you could've prevented all of that. We would've done our job right and we would've won those fights! But you all fucked up, and that ruined everything!"

Ryan scoffs loudly and clears his throat.
"Are you seri-?!" Then he laughs and storms up to me. "Okay whatever, screw this! Venus, she switched sides, Zackary double crossed you, they had HUNDREDS of people in there beating the crap out of ALL of us!"

"Including Albert! You and Snake have muscles bigger than Albert's head, and he STILL kicked your asses!" I said. "I thought you were better than that! Especially YOU Snake, or are you not as strong as I thought?!"

But then Snake folds his arms and gets really snarky. "Gee, I don't know. Maybe I can remind you by tapping your HEAD again!"

"What?!"

Then Tobias rushes in between us.
"Hey- Hey!" He shoves us apart, and faces me. "What are we even doing right now? Why are you talking to us like this?"

"Why wouldn't I be? You're the ones who are obviously fucking up!"

"Are we though? Whether this was our fault or YOURS- none of that matters, because guess what? At leasts we're still here," Tobias declared. "Lexi. Donnie. Venus? Some of the most loyal Conquerors walked off and gave up on you. And with everyone who was remaining with us, half our squad quit!"

"And they wouldn't have if you guys had actually stopped that from happening!"

This confuses them.
"What? Why would we stop that? How could we blame them for wanting to leave after what happened?"

"Shut up. I refuse to believe that Albert persuaded this many people to betray me!"

Snake is silent.
Ryan is silent.
And then Tobias speaks out. "Angela........you still think that everyone left just because for what Albert said?!"

"Why not? He said he was going to destroy our kingdom and tear it down, when all he did was shrink it with a couple of annoying, preachy words."

"Maybe. But the words he spoke, really HAVE damaged our kingdom. Because of the thoughts we've had over them.....but also, the influence that came out of it has all been a disaster! Especially because of all the footage."

"What are you talking about?"

Tobias pressed his hands on my desk. "People were taking videos of us during thay giant fight. Taking videos. Taking photos. And the past 3 days, we've been getting tagged in posts and videos all over Facebook and Instagram and Twitter, by the people who saw us at the church."

"So what? That's always happened before but they never release anything significant that causes a problem."

"Yes but we've never had a situation where over 500 people were posting about the exact same event, at the exact church, at exactly the Same time. And thousands of people have been reshaping them!"

"Angela, this isn't like before where he attacked infamous people who people despised or just didn't care about. We attacked people who were friends and apparent beloved individuals to an entire community! We attacked people.with influence and in the case of Albert's brother, an actual online following!"

"Speaking of which, that little brother posted an entire YouTube video explaining what happened to all of us, and its going viral. And Venus, Antoine, Lexi, Bryce and Zack all provided evidence to it."

"Evidence, smevidence, they still can't deny the fact thay Curtis scammed us and stole from us."

"Yes, but someone else who made a post on it, was Curtis's own pastor. He made a public resignation, stating that he was guilty for making decisions thay caused Curtis to commit a scam in order to help people who were wrongfully punished, AND that he took responsibility for all of the injuries. So now we know, that Curtis scammed us, because of indirect repercussions!"

"And everyone knows that you willingly gave that money away. Along with Celine's and several of OURS, because of Albert AND because of Storm!"

"Once again, they're twisting our narrative," I said nonchalantly.

"What the-?! NO!!"

'WAKE UP, ANGELA!!! There is evidence and video footage of us all over! News interviews, news coverage, livestreams and witness footage, security footage from the mall, police and hospital reports- CHRIST, Albert's brother is a YouTuber, and he posted a video talking about us, and its Trending! We've got claims and evidence from ALL kinds of sources! Including proof that you refunded money from our plane tickets jn order to use it as bail for those two rapists!"

"Because we needed new workers."

"And you think criminals are who we need to hire?! Pedophiles and predators?! What were you thinking?!"

"Well those two workers were arrested, and sent to maximum security. And as for everyone else, both old and new, they all got caught on video, and that's out on the internet now! That's forever! We are FOREVER going to be known as the psycho atheist pornstars who threatened people, assaulted people, hired criminals and attacked all of the bystanders! We even shot bullets at some of them!"

"So what?"

"WHAT?!! Angela, people have left, all because of our crisis! People are in the hospital. People on TV are talking about us everywhere! People almost DIED because of us, WE COULD HAVE BLOOD ON OUR HANDS ALL OVER AGAIN-!"

"SO WHAT??!!! You've all been through worse beatings before! Especially whenever people at the campus found out YOU were a faggot!!" I shouted at Tobias. Tobias just widens his eyes and stared at me, while Ryan and Snake stare at me coldly. "What? It's true! You've all been through this shit before!"

"This was different. People weren't literally stabbing us with knives," Ryan said.

"When those six jock guys were attacking me, making me bleed, did it remind me of the past when jocks beat me up for being gay? Yes! But this didn't feel like the same thing. Those guys were trying to harassing and mess with me because they thought I was a creepy freak. These guys, they were going hard on me, because they felt like I was some kind of Evil MONSTER..!!" Tobias emotionally grunted.

"Why should any of that matter...?!" I said looking at them. "We know who we are, and WHY we did this! So why should we allow this to bother us!!"

"Because........we don't all feel as strongly about that as you do. Pressure and anxiety has been building up on all of us the past few days. People don't trust you anymore. People don't find US credible anymore. There are too many testimonies and too many accounts for us to fight back against now, and even if we wanted to, fighting fire with fire is only going to make us look worse!"

"And Angela? You......put all of us in this situation-!"

"BECAUSE HE CAME AFTER US!!!"

"AND YOU LET HIM!!! He exposed us, and you helped him do it. If we had just come home and forgotten about him, it wouldn't have happened. But you forced our problems to become worse!"

"You're just not trusting me as much because everyone else lost faith in me and left."

"That's the problem. The way you've been running this show, it's always about you. You want us to do shit for you while you hide."

"But you've put us in charge and now, we're acting like we're men in charge."

"And even better, the three of us have made some surprising success with deciding some stuff for the group and scheduling."

"Why would you already decide every-?" I then shake my head. "Okay. Well, as long as you're working I suppose that's all the matters."

"Well, I'm happy that you agree with us."

I start pacing the office, gripping onto my hair. "So, aside from Brock, Tabitha, Declan, and possibly KT.....this small group is ALL we have left?"

"Yes, but that's not as big of a problem as everything else we just mentioned-" Ryan tried to say.

"It is a major problem!" I interrupted. "We are an AEV company, and with this being all we have left to support? Other than Jamie, Ofelia, Griffin, Giovanni and Bella, who are all loyal and fan favorites among our viewers, nearly everyone else out there, they are literally the runts of our litter, the lowest of the ranks-"

Tobias snickers. "C'mon Angela, you're over exaggerating-"

"The BOTTOM of our barrel!" I pushed. "Underrated workers, underdogs and lesser known models, yeah we've got those, but it's not gonna matter...! I know this because I've seen the rankings and votes that people post online. And if this is everyone, we're gonna decline rapidly, and our income might as well collapse."

"Doesn't matter. We've already started a fundraiser for the Mitchell's so they can provide treatment for KT while he recovers in town,'' Snake said. "And then, everyone who's left our company, we've already emptied the money out of their accounts with us, and shipped them back before you could rob another dime out of any of us."

"WHAT??!!!" I shouted. "Why would you dump out our money and transfer it around like that?!"

"Because not all of it is OURS. I mean.....are we gonna trust you with our money anymore?" Tobias asked.

I slowly turn to Tobias. "That's low. VERY low...." But then I snicker. "Wait wait wait! Yes....I get it. The irony of giving our money to Curtis. We can expose the Mitchell's as potential scammers and saboteurs, which will BE PERFECT WHEN WE-!!"

"No you dumbass. We are not doing anything against them," Snake said.

"And that also means, we're not harassing the youth group anymore when they come back from California. And none of us.......are going to tell them ANYTHING about Curtis and Albert.....or Cheyenne."

Ryan nods his head. "Not unless they want us to."

"Want us too?!'' I bury MY face into my hands, several thoughts racing through my head, skeptical about their words and wording choices. "What is this bullshit...? Since when do we seek permission from anyone about Anything!"

"You tell us. You're the one who didn't want us to tell the others about what we found out about Forty Lashes," Tobias remarked. I look at him with disgust and offense. "Angela, starting more fires against churches isn't gonna help us. We all know how much you dislike them, but we gotta let that go for now."

"But if we're being all buddy buddy likee fucking idiots against the two most detestable churches in the country, HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO RUN OUR KINGDOM, AS FEARED CONQUERORS WHO WILL MOCK RELIGION INTO NON-EXISTANCE??!!!!!"

"Well, we just won't do that anymore, at least for now," Tobias said calmly. I look at Tobias in horror. "We're tired.......and we need to focus on matters that are actually........important. And the only priority that means actual shit right now......is our own jobs among The Kingdom."

"And......it's JUST The Kingdom now," Snake said. "We've made all of the updates and the public announcements.....and most of the apologies..."

"We were signing contracts and papers on the spot as soon as we stepped foot inside here. And we didn't eat until the next morning."

"Why?" I asked.

"Because they were right. We need to change things. And we've already lost a little too much to let you continue doing the same shit now. Albert told us before we made peace, that we sounded like men in charge. And guess what, we found out we actually like calling some of the shots around here." Snake said. "Okay Johnson was right, we have to change things. So this is how it's gonna be moving forward."

"Which is why Ryan, Tobias and I have already outlined our plans for the next three months or so.

"Months?"

"Yes we've got new mandates come in. Auditions scheduled for the beginning of August-"

"Looking for new Sponsors in the middle of October-"

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa slow down, I can hardly process any of this fast enough, I need you to slow down so I can figure out which plans I approve of," I said.

"That's just the thing. We don't need you to approve any of this."

"Right now, we have six leaders and two of them are in the hospital. It's the three of us, and you."

"And since we all agree on the outlines.....it's already in favor, whether you like them or not."

"But what about our deal with the Lashers?"

"Not important now. Do we really wanna work with them? I don't think we do."

"But I've already made an agreement with them-!"

"Cancel it. We got better things to worry about than being bus Boys for metalheads."

"You wanna tell me who has things to worry about-?!"

"Angela, you are not in a position to make any-!" Snake trailed.

"YOU ARE NOT GOING TO HAVE ANY POSITION WITH ME, IF WE'RE JUST GOING TO ARGUE AND DISAGREE ON EVERYTHING!!!!"

"So let's not argue," Tobias suggested. "Be thankful.....that we even wanna stay, and help you RUN the place. Or disagree, go behind our backs......and we walk."

My eyes widen as I look at the three of them standing together. Boldly and confident. I'm too shocked to even speak.
"People hate us because we obeyed the puppet master. All we want to do is fix that reality. And start doing things in a way that helps us achieve that?"

Either way, I scold them and step backwards to the door. But before I turn around......
"Mark. My. Words. Do not underestimate me!" I angrily growled.

"Well guess what, Angela? Or- No, WHOEVER you are....." Snake softly said. My eyes widen with offense. "We already HAVE.....by not realizing sooner. What you dragged us into the moment I invited you to the rejects' table. Not realizing the monsters you were gonna turn us into. But no more blindness. No more deceptions. No more covering anything up ourselves......

"For now on.......we're watching our backs with you. Just like the Mitchells and the Lions," Ryan said. "And we've decided.....that we've already hurt them, enough," Ryan said.

"We're done with them. And that means you are. Right?" Tobias grinned. "We all want the same thing, apparently."

I shake my head. "We'll see about that....."
I storm up the steps.

I step outside and pace around the driveway outside the garage.
"Angela?" I turn around. and see David and Sylvia Mitchell walking down the sidewalks. "I......I never thought in a million years I'd be happy to see you."

"Agreed. We told everyone about what your men told us you were willing to do for my son. I could never be able to say it enough but......thank you," David said. "And.....i hardly recognized your two boys."

"Me neither! It's like they're whole different couple all of a sudden!!" Sylvia said, barely containing her joy. "EEK!! God be praised!!"

They walk away....while I turn around and stand against one of the cars feeling so conflicted and frustrated. I just- I can't believe this. I CAN'T!!

Cece, my former lover of 4 years and the dear of our business who I believed to be dead, was alive, she betrayed and scammed us, attacked Mr, and not only is supporting Albert, Curtis and those other Bakersfield cockroaches, but she's left me for him of all people!
Snake, who has been supporting to me and on my side since the day I first met him, who introduced me to Brock, Tobias, Ryan, Tabitha and Lexi, is now going against my interests and has already been working behind my back.
Brock, who was one of my most loyal Conquerors, always ready to do what I ask, and destroy whoever gets in his way, is now in a hospital, hundreds of miles away, after letting his guard down, and is probably vulnerable to being persuaded by those wretches.
Tabitha and Declan are unconscious when I need them the most b3cause now Ryan and Tobias don't even trust me anymore.
Hundreds of people who were in partnership with me, working for me, supporting our group financially, have completely left me and cut ties with all of us apparently.
My main hackers are gone. Lexi is gone. The leaders of the Shiners have deserted me and the only two left with me are Edd and Nate, a big chubby creep and a guy who's a mute.
Oh and without the hackers, I apparently can't do anything new to our website except upload new videos and scenes, when there's a giant livestream of that entire night posted and we can't take it off after our passcodes have been changed behind our backs.
Elijah, who I've thought I was done with after my last message to him, took advantage of my situation with Storm and now, apparently he and his other pitifulions have finished their less conference earlier than I had believed, and they've shared whatever filth they had to say to a live audience, in from of Brazzom press and execs.
That Albert guy, who I merely thought was a loser who could entertain me, has completely humiliated me, and, when I open my phone, there are dozens, maybe even hundreds of posts in my notifications. And indeed when I slide to unlock my phone, there are several videos that have us tagged in them, ranging from people talking about what happened, tagging articles, and their own videos of the fight happening around them as they recorded on the sidelines.
All the money I spent on new people has been completely wasted, now that only 12 of the 130 new people I invited and flew out to California, all fucked off while I was unconscious except for 12 of then. TWELVE!!
And on top of that, the group I had that had been expanding the past few years, has now gone back to the same size it was when Cece first disappeared from us. And while I know some of these remaining guys are fiercely loyal, what is it even going to matter if the majority of them have no faith in me, and are following Snake, Ryan and Tobias.

We.......we Lost. We were humiliated. Deceived. And I'm the person everyone is pointing the finger at now. Me....the one who after being raped, having so many family disasters, having barely survived my college years, just wanted to feel in control, wanted to do something to be remembered and feel powerful. Everything is falling apart, all because of what people think about me. Just like before... even the people I actually TRUSTED...!

I then SLAM MY FISTS ON MY JASON'S WINDSHIELD AND SCREAM OUT LOUDLY IN RAGE!!!
"GRRAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!"
Birds fly away from the volume while I pant slowly.
I then whisper to myself. "Fine. Be that way. I'll play your game and then you'll see. YOU'LL ALL SEE!!!! You showed me the truth, Albert. Well I always......share the truth. And when I do-"

"Excuse us. Ma'am?" I then turn around. I see two officers, one young and one older. "Lady, are you in trouble? It sounded like you were in danger."

"Wha-? Oh. Uh.....n- no. Not me. I am definitely not in danger..." I said, trying my hardest to hide the rage from my face.

"I hope not.....Jessie?"

The younger one nods. "Mr. Mayor. Is this your step daughter....?"

Jason steps out.......and he's crying. Which.....make me nervous. I have NEVER seen this man cry before. He hardly even frowns. "Y- Yes....! T- That's her..... IM SO SORRY....!!"

"No no no. It's okay. I'm so sorry about your biological daughter. And I'm sorry that you have to find out this way."

He even breaks down and falls ro his knees, which.....after hearing something about his step daughter, Stacey.....Lockwood...who worked as one of the Conquerors before, only makes me suspicious.

No..... Surely they didn't...!

I then go walking up to them.
"Wait, why are you sorry? What's going on?"

"Listen sweetie, we're gonna be on our way soon. If you're curious then you should talk aith your-"

"Where is my step sister? You are going to stay here, and tell me. I've been trying to find her myself."

With that, the detective has a really concerned look on his face. He turns to the older officer who nodsto him before facing me again.
"Well.....I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but....." Sigh. "Somebody else has already found her. They found the body in the back of a van."

My eyes slowly widen, and a dreadful chill rushes down my spine. "What...? No. How?"

We haven't classified the cause of her death yet. All we know is that she had the initials, Z
Engraved into her wrists. With a knife."
A "Z" engraving....
They.....they actually did it, the bastards....

Jason shakes his head. "I can't believe this...almost 4 years..... my darling."

"You have our hearts in our thoughts, Mr. Mayor. Please, keep this one safe." The older one said looking to me. They begin to walk over to where their police car is.

Then this....this gives me an idea.
An idea on how we can restore our image in the public eye.....and an idea on how to get payback on those filthy pests...

I then run forward before the siree blare. "Wait!" they turn to me. "Wait. Please.....you need to stay."

"Stay? We- We've got nothing else to do here."

"We're already far enough from home. What more do you want from us?"

"If you could sll come back inside....and let me bring 3 people into the dining room, I promise, you will not regret it."

'I'm afraid we can't do that. We don't have anybody to look out for."

"Alright, fine. Then just take me with you and hear me out." I look down to the badge. "I swear......I know the people who did this."

They look deep into my eyes.
"Wait. Aren't you-?"

"Angela Fox. Always sexier in person. But that's not the point. Listen," I said. "Do you know the band Forty Lashes?"

"I......have their newest CD right here. Why?"

"I will go with you. And I'll tell you everything I know. But we have to keep it a secret. What I'm about to tell you about Forty Lashee......is the very reason why Luke Snipe left the band. Because of the people they work with. The ones who did this."

They stare at me. "Are you sure you're telling the truth......"

"One hundred percent. I saw some things.....and my co-workers were right. Now I can't stay quiet about this anymore. If you let me go with you.....I promise to tell you everything......wnd then I'm going to help you."

Jason stares at me. "You mean Y- You know.....?"

"Please. I will do anything for my step-sister's murder."
After mom died, she......was the only family member I ever felt like I truly had. Now they're both gone.

Jessie steps out wne opens the back door. "Hop in.....and start from the beginning."

"I will. They'll pay for this Jason. All of them." I climb into the back of this stop car. They close the door and the siten goes off and we drive away.

"Start with this. Why do you want in?"

"Do you know who Luke Snipe is?"

Jessie scoffs. "Yeah. Who doesn't?"

"What about the missing legend? Hahahan I suppose you're gonna tell us he disappeared to start this newly confirmed killing spree?"

"Better than that. I believe it's because he found out about, these killings, and what im about to tell you, that he disappeared. Because now just like him......I don't trust them anymore."

"Them?"

"His band, Forty Lashes. And the REAL people they work with." Jessie looks behind at ne, while the other one starts at me in the window. "I know. I'm gonna help you, because the people who did this......THIS is why Luke Snipe disappeared, and why it's possible that we'll never see him again. Ever..."

Meanwhile, at the exact moment in New York......
"We'll have to go on without him."

"Wait. What is that?"

They start to hear an engine revving.

James and Peter hear this and grin. "Oh for Pete's SAKE!"

"What?"

"Come on!"

Everyone runs outside and gathers around down the front steps. And, the motorcycle noise travels farther away.

"Wait, what is he-?"

"What's going on out here?"

"Aww, he does this all the time. Just look ahead," Ashley said.

"Ahead for what?" I asked. "What's happening?"

"Yeah? Who are we out here for?" Monica asked.

Simon hears an approaching noise and cackles lightheartedly. Then he points a finger outward. "Him."

We all look ahead.
And out from the far east corner of the street, a motorcyclist comings zooming out. And he turns to our direction, and speeds his way towards us.

After reaching 15 feet in front of us, this rider swiftly turns his bike and skids it into a parking position.
Geez, is this a daredevil or something?

However.....
Wait a second.
My eyes widen when I see the bike.

The license plate says "Luksnip."
The front of the bike is black and white with faded shadows, and the sides of the bike has faded patterns with whipping posts on it.
And this biker is wearing a jacket that has a very familiar design.

Then, the biker himself.....
He steps off of the bike (and this guy is even taller than I am!) and removes his helmet before turning to us. He's distinctively handsome, with very toned out skin and a face that looks recently shaved. He has dark jet-black hair that goes to his shoulders, green eyes, pretty thick eyebrows and sideburns.

That face.......? Oh my God! IS THAT-?!!!

Peter and James begin to snicker. "Always the one to show off."

"Lucas?" Ashley shakes her head. "You're late."

"What? You guys weren't gonna do this without me, were ya?" Lucas spoke out, in a husky-voiced Irish accent.

Simon stands next to Ashley and turns to all of us. "Everybody? You've met my kids. and you've met James. But now, let me officially introduce you to the man who's gonna be the head of all of this: Lucas McCartney. Although, a few of you might remember him as Luke."

A chill runs down my spine.
Monica widens her eyes. "Wait a minute. THAT'S Lucas?!"

"HE'S gonna be leading us in the sessions..?!" Victoria asked.

"That is correct. We're honored to have you with us," Simon said.

"The honor is mine, Pastor Cosgrove."
The man Lucas, nods to Simon, and sets down his helmet. He looks at all of us, then turns to me and starts approaching me, which happens while I have my head turned looking over at James and Simon in shock.
"Hmm. You must be the youth guy."
With that accent, it's hard for me to tell if he said 'new guy' or 'youth guy.'

My head sharply turns to see him in front of me. "Uh-?!"
I slap my hands around, and hyperly extend my hand out to him. "H-Hi! I, uh, I'm Albert!" I say with a giant excited smile.

But, Lucas just pats my shoulder. "Good."
And then he just steps away.

Guess I shouldn't be surprised.

He walks along the line of everybody else. "Well, I recognize......some of you guys. And some of you? Well, ha, more than others."

Ashley shakes her head, smirking at him.
"I told you a hundred times, don't be late. Don't be missing today."

"Just you wait. That won't be a thing once we actually get started."

"Let's hope not," Peter teased.

Simon approaches him. "Still, I was wondering if you were gonna show up at all."

"Well you didn't think I was gonna let you launch this whole thing without your mew worship pastor, did you?"

Simon smiles at him. "Well, we're glad to have you with us." Simon pats him on the back and chuckles, looking to the rest of us. "Well, Pastor Lucas is allowed to be a little late. For today!" Everybody chuckles after hearing this. "Alright enough standing around. Let's get back to it."

Then everyone starts walking back inside. Some of the others are whispering in surprise to each other. James and I are the last ones to step back inside, and I tug on his arm.
"What the heck? Did you know about this?!"

James shrugs with a blank face. "Pretty much. I did tell you that a new guy was moving into my house to be with my cousin, but none of us knew anything about who he was at the time."

"Why didn't you tell me that, I was gonna be serving a church with Luke Snipe from Forty Lashes of all people?!!"

"Lucas," James corrected with a smile. "And for the same reasons I haven't told any of them about your lady friend Cheyenne."

"Wait what? What do you mean by that?"

"Trust me buddy, it'd be best if you wouldn't mention that name around him. Let's just say.....he's not particularly fond of, that time in his life anymore."

My eyes widen a little bit..
"Hey? You guys coming in or what?" Peter called out from the inside.

"Duh! Come on."

Albert steps inside, shaking his head with amused laughter.
"Man, Cheyenne and the others are gonna flip when they learn about this."

Well this certainly took a swerve.
Yes, Luke Snipe, aka Lucas is finally here and he's gonna be working with our characters at the church. It's no secret that in chapter 2, the explanation for why Luke had left the Forty Lashes band WASN'T completely true, and this chapter seems to imply that the actual reason he left was MUCH worse and something that's being kept a secret.
We'll find out more about what that reason is, but it's gonna be fun seeing how the other characters will react when he comes back on stage with the church.